Payoneer vs Rivet: what it costs to get paid by international clients

Payoneer solved a real problem. Marketplaces and platforms needed a way to pay sellers and freelancers in dozens of countries, and Payoneer gave each of them an account the platform could pay into. Many agencies and service companies opened an account for that reason and then kept using it for every client.

The fees are mostly percentages, and a percentage of every invoice gets large once a company bills tens of thousands a month. This article compares Payoneer with Rivet for one case: a company invoicing business clients abroad and converting some of what it earns.

Figures are from each provider's published pricing page, linked at the end. Payoneer notes that the fees in your account can vary by region and volume, so check the Fees section of your own account too.

The fees side by side

A worked example

Take a design agency registered in the UK. Its US clients pay it 20,000 USD a month. It keeps a few thousand dollars for US software subscriptions and converts the rest to pay staff in pounds.

On Payoneer, the dollars land in a USD receiving account. For a UK company USD is not the local currency, so the 1% receiving fee applies: 200 USD. Converting and withdrawing about 17,000 USD to a GBP bank account falls in the published 1.2% to 4% range: 204 to 680 USD. Total: about 404 to 880 USD a month, before any card fees.

On Rivet Growth, the clients pay into the agency's USD account details by ACH or domestic wire. Nothing is deducted on arrival. Converting 17,000 USD at a margin from 0.50% costs about 85 USD, and the plan fee is 200 USD. Total: about 285 USD a month, with GBP account details, physical cards and approvals included.

The difference grows with volume, because Payoneer's costs are percentages and Rivet's plan fee is fixed. At lower volumes, Rivet's free Starter plan has no monthly fee and FX from 0.80%; the per-payout fee is $2.00.

Where Payoneer still makes sense

Payoneer fits when most of your income comes from marketplaces that pay Payoneer accounts directly. Transfers between Payoneer customers are free. It also fits if you receive in your local currency and rarely convert, so the 1% non-local receiving fee does not apply, or if your volume is small enough that the percentages come to a few dollars a month.

Plenty of companies keep both: Payoneer for marketplace income, and a business account in their own name for direct clients.

What clients see

Fees are one part of the decision. The other is what the client sees when they pay.

With US account details, a US client pays by ACH or a domestic wire, the same way it pays its other vendors. Our guide to getting paid by US clients covers why that tends to get invoices paid on time.

Rivet issues account details in your company's legal name. Name-checking services such as the UK's Confirmation of Payee and the EU's Verification of Payee compare the name a payer types with the name on the account. A match avoids a warning on the client's screen.

A 10,000 USD invoice arrives as 10,000 USD in your balance.

Beyond receiving

The same workspace also covers the work around the invoice.

Pay a team or freelancers abroad with bulk payouts, one approval per batch. Our guide to paying international contractors covers the paperwork.

Control client ad spend with a corporate card per client or per platform, each with its own limit. See virtual cards for ad spend.

Accept or pay in stablecoins when a client or contractor prefers USDC or USDT, through Rivet's ramps.

How Rivet handles this

Rivet gives your company USD account details on every plan, and EUR and GBP details from Growth, all in its legal name. Clients pay on their domestic rails. Nothing is taken on arrival. Every conversion shows the rate and fee before you confirm. Your FX rate is confirmed during onboarding, before you move anything. Compare the plans on pricing, or see the Wise Business alternatives comparison if you are weighing other providers too.